I don't have all the words right now but this film is a work of art.

it is finally so absorbing because it plays like a lyrical road odyssey that’s also a detective story.

While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

Chained Heat (1983) * 1/2 (out of 4) Ten years after becoming a star with THE EXORCIST, Linda Blair got top billing for this women-in-prison flick. In the film she plays a sweet young woman who commits a crime and has to spend a year and a half in prison. This prison is full of wicked women, crazy guards and a perverted warden (John Vernon). In terms of American WIP films this one here goes pretty far out but it still can't hold a candle to the various Euro films like Jess Franco's BARBED WIRE DOLLS, SADOMANIA or even any of the ILSA movies. With that said, there's a certain amount of charm that comes with seeing Blair and Vernon doing a movie like this but that's not enough to keep this thing moving throughout the running time. The biggest problem is that the film itself doesn't know what it wants to be. The film starts off extremely corny with all sorts of silly fights, girls cussing at one another and even a shower scene, which is a must for this type of movie. The word exploitation is all over the picture but around the half way mark the film takes a more serious note as it tries to tackle the corruption going on inside the prison. Blair gives a fairly good performance but she has several crying scenes where you can't help but feel bad for her and this isn't the type of feelings that need to be in a WIP film. We really don't need these type of dramatics when the film sets out to be exploitation. Vernon was a real hoot in his pervert role and you can obviously tell that he is enjoying his character and the hot tub he has in the office to sleep with the female prisoners. For fans of filth there's still enough here to enjoy, although it certainly falls into the "so bad it's good" league. Blair's shower sequence has become rather legendary in terms of exploitation over the years but it was somewhat of a letdown.

"Chained Heat" is the kind of Women-in-Prison film for those who don't like the genre.**SPOILERS**Arriving at a new prison, Carol Henderson, (Linda Blair) finds that the other inmates coming in with her, Val, (Sharon Hughes) Bubbles, (Louisa Moritz) and Blue Eyes, (Jody Medford) are out to protect her from Ericka, (Sybil Danning) Bobbi, (Dee Biederbeck) and Lulu, (Greta Blackburn) some of the tougher inmates. As they all get processed into the facility, they realize that Warden Bacman, (John Vernon) has big plans for them, since they are also in league with her to run a drug ring in the prison. As they spend more time in the prison, they all realize that a war within the prison's inmates has them all in the palm of Captain Taylor, (Stella Stevens) who has plans on taking control of the prison. Not standing up for the deception, they revolt against the authorities to get better conditions for themselves and throw the corrupt heads in charge out of power.The News: As far as Women-in-Prison films go, this one is a more classy version, for better or worse. Despite being a mainstream film, this one still features enough requirements of the genre to make it count. There's the butch authority figure with the manly haircut and the constant cigar-chomping attitude, the women inside taken out to be sold as prostitutes, higher motives for those in charge and then the sleaze angles, featuring everything from the nudity to the sex and much more. There's a requisite shower sequence that features a couple of full-frontal shots, the dominating one forcing the rookie to wash her down and more that are prerequisites of the style. Even the sex scenes are pretty sleazy, with the fact that they're recording it and forcing others to watch or perform special moves which is where the sleaze comes in. From the interactions in the yard to the way the newbie is handled by the others all the way to the fight against the higher-ups, this one really plays well with the conventions of the genre, only doing them in a sanitary way without being too dirty or disgusting. The sanitation in here is perhaps the biggest flaw in the film, since it gets to be able to do all of that without going to the lengths the other ones have done, which is what made them fun. Going all the way and being as sleazy and disgusting as they were was what made the others work, but this one here goes around that and makes it too clean-feeling, ruining much of that and feeling too much like a high-brow attempt at making a genre entry, which doesn't work at all. There's also the sanitized deaths in here, with really lame kills that don't have anything to offer up, with just about all of them being done in bloodless manners or hidden so that there's nothing that can be seen when its done. It's hard to get into the dirtiness of the film when everything is so clean and sanitized. Aside from these, there's also some good points to this as well. The riot through the prison at the end is really great, with the fully impressive and full-on action that takes place. It's a long series of brawls that culminate with some big action in here with a long battle that is perfectly needed to end the film on a great high. The other part that works is a rather tense chase through the catacombs early on, where an unseen force runs down an inmate through a darkened series of hallways, walkways and more, with some tense moments and a great send-off that makes it work. All of these, though, are mostly undone by the rather tame feeling it has.The Final Verdict: A more upscale exploitation film that offers up what the genre has to offer without the sleaze, this doesn't really reach the depths the best have to offer. If you want the option of seeing one with getting as offended with the other ones, give it a try but more adventurous exploitation fans have better options.Rated R: Graphic Language, Full Nudity, Violence, drug use and a couple mild sex scenes

Dubbed by a source as "The Citizen Kane of Prison films", Chained Heat starts off as corny, but soon escalates into a thrill ride full of prison guards as sadistic as the warden and signs off with one hell of a conclusion.I could give describe the movie from head to toe though it's better that you only have the plot of the movie before seeing it, otherwise the thrill factor will fly out the window.One thing though, is that certain movies don't capture you instantly and "Chained Heat" is no exception. But don't you just miss the days where movies built up or got nowhere then turned out to be the best thing since sliced bread? I do...

This has to be one of my all time favourite sexploitation movies. A stellar cast, over-the-top acting, lots of prison fights and violence, and just enough nudity to give it added appeal. The drive-in theatres here in Toronto held over this classic in '83 and brought it back as an added feature in '84. The sound fluctuates, the boom microphone shows up in parts, and the movie is dark, however, these technical flaws do not take away from the grittiness of this movie, they just add to it. If you are looking for a good "women in chains" movie, this is one of the best.